Tracking dropouts is crucial

Re “Who’s a dropout?” editorial, April 6

I have a suggestion for counting students who don’t graduate from California high schools. All schools have a given number of students who enter ninth grade each year and each school also has a given number of students who graduate each year.

By comparing these data over several years and for each high school, it would be easy to establish an accurate pattern of actual dropouts.

One local high school has more than 900 students who enter the ninth grade each year and fewer than 400 students graduate each year. After a number of years of that pattern, it’s easy to determine the percentage of those entering students who end up as dropouts.

California has the additional problem of an exit exam that is driving students out of school long before they reach their senior year. It’s time for us to make all high schools meaningful learning experiences again so students will graduate with the knowledge and skills needed to succeed in life.

Ruby Trow

Whittier

The writer, an emeritus professor at Cal Poly Pomona, is a teacher educator in adult and vocational education in the L.A. County Office of Education.